As the speed at which processors and other circuits operate has increased, the focus of many circuit design techniques has shifted towards ensuring compliance with stringent timing requirements. To make sure that circuits they design conform to these stringent timing requirements, circuit designers use a number of different timing prediction/modeling tools. Many of these tools generate timing models of a circuit using pre-constructed models of common elements or groups of elements stored in library files. Many of these tools also use simplified equations based on generalized assumptions. Because of the way in which these modeling tools operate, the circuit timing estimates they generate are often not completely accurate.
Other, more accurate modeling tools are available. Their accuracy, however, comes at the expense of speed. In order to achieve greater accuracy, these more accurate modeling tools generally employ more complex equations, and/or take into account a larger universe of variables in generating timing estimates. Unfortunately, when dealing with modern circuits having millions of transistors, these more accurate tools are too slow to use for analyzing all of the signal paths in a circuit.
Consequently, circuit designers are often placed in the unenviable position of choosing between using fast modeling tools providing relatively inaccurate results, and tools that are significantly slower but provide more accurate results. It should be apparent, therefore, that an improved way of modeling the timing of complex circuits would be advantageous.